She Was a Mover
by srslyallison
Summary: She had to be a Pusher. None of this would've happened if she was a Pusher. But she was a Mover.
1. Chapter 1

((well, i own none of this c: this is my first push fic. some r&r would be loved, of course. enjoy!))

"We're going to have to hurry and get out of here, okay? Division is coming."

"Division?" she asked, and she looked up to him. "Where's mom?"

"She's...she's not around anymore, okay? Alright? Listen, just grab your tiger, grab your bag, that's it...here, I'll put it in the trunk..." the girl's father mumbled, looking very stressed out, and her tears weren't helping. She sniffled up at him with those big brown eyes of hers, watching her father shove every available suitcase in the trunk with anything they could bring. She was two, of course she didn't understand who Division was. She barely understood what she was. He didn't want to blame the little girl, but it was her being a Mover that stopped all of this. They wanted a Pusher…

Division got to Kira faster than he could, and she was Pushed into believing that she was an agent once more. Apparently they'd made her believe she was assigned to find him, marry him, and Push him into believing they wanted a child. Nick could barely believe it, but Division was forcing them both to...breed. His hands shook more at the thought of them actually bringing a life only to just take it away again, but apparently they'd been doing this for a while. Then again, Kira had told him this, so he was hesitant to believe her. They'd twisted her mind so much that he barely remembered what the truth was.

"Now then. Up you go." He lifted her into the car seat in the back, his hands shaking. "Division is a...group of people, who want to hurt us because we're special," he explained, hastily as he looked over to her as she sat there, staring at him with an open mind and a shaky bottom lip. "Your mom worked for them, I think. She..." he started, and he looked down, shaking his head. "It's not her fault. It really isn't, just..." he sighed, and took the little tiger from the back, handing it to her.

"There you go. Hold on to it and just don't let go. Try to go to sleep." Nick stared at his daughter, whom he guessed he never wanted in the first place. And Kira didn't want her either, but not for the reason she thought. He suddenly wasn't sure how to talk to her. He remembered being such a good dad. Damn.

He remembered back to all of the memories they shared. Obviously they'd been together for the span of two years, or Olive would not be in existence. And she wouldn't be this old. "They wanted a Pusher. A Pusher as strong as me, and perhaps with your strength," Kira's voice rang in his chaotic mind as he sped through the streets, gearing for the highway. He wasn't making any concrete decision. It was unsafe with the Watchers tracking them, and…well, he didn't care where he ended up.

"But they discovered she would be a Mover. Like you." The apathy in her voice stung more than he could believe. Two years...at least...she'd been lying to him. To Olive..."Watchers saw that coming. Watchers that would be on Division's side, anyway. I'm warning you, Nick, because this is my child. So get out of town as fast as you can. That being said, I can't help you. I am sorry it had to be you."

Nick felt tears well up in his eyes, and he was glad he knew these roads like the back of his hand. He yelled and screamed, tried to tell her how they'd done this before. He had no proof anymore, though, no shred of evidence. She had a badge, and training, and a mission, apparently. And Nick had nothing but the love in his heart and Coney Island.

Kira was gone before he could even confirm that she existed. His yelling woke Olive up, naturally, who felt like a stranger to him all of a sudden. And now here they were, on the run, much like he was with his own father. His daughter was a third-generation Mover. He should feel proud, but she felt like someone else's child, and he was just babysitting her for the time being.

Her sniffles were finally beginning to quiet down in the back seat. He remembered how it was with his own dad, roaming around to avoid Division. Nick decided he would make it easier. Much easier. He looked in his rear view mirror, seeing her shifting uncomfortably in her car seat. The tiger, which had fallen to the floor, lifted up haphazardly into the air. It missed her lap, but she could reach it from there.

He snickered and nodded, looking forward to the road again. "You'll probably be better than I ever was," he mumbled. "I mean, you're...I guess, a pure bred? I mean, you're not a dog, I just..." he laughed, and looked forward as it began to rain. Naturally. "I just mean you have both of our strengths. And somehow, you managed to defy the odds and get my ability. Weird how that works."

The rain pitter-pattered against the windshield and he let her sleep.

----

Too many years had passed since they left. Olive paced in a hotel room in the middle of New York City, looking down to her feet as she did. "So when did Cassie say that they would be here?" she asked, gulping a little bit as she looked over to her father. He seemed to be out of it. "Will you promise not to fight them? I mean, you know what happens when people fight them..."

"Cassie said they would be here in fifteen," Nick said. He looked quite a bit different than how he looked before...of course he'd aged because, well, twelve years had passed. Stress also got to him; speckles of early greying could be seen mixed in with the brown hair. The bags over his eyes got heavier every year, and he'd gained just a bit of weight. He looked up to her.

He was quite proud with how Olive had turned out. She was only fifteen, but he had a feeling she would be fine. He'd contacting Hook about letting her stick around before she found a place of herself with his money. He'd made sure to keep her safe from his inevitable grave, unlike his own father.

He watched her pace, chewing on her fingernails. "Don't do that. Bad habit."

"You still haven't answered my question," she said with a heavy sigh, and she finally sat down next to him. "Don't fight them. I mean, who knows, this drug may work on you. They've changed it, or so they say..."

"Who's they?"

"Liam," Olive replied. "You know, he's a Shifter. I met him when we were staying in Trenton. He said he knew Hook," she said, and she smiled up to him grimly. "So do you promise? Besides, it's not like I won't be trying to get you out."

"You won't," Nick said, sternly, and he glared down at her. "You're not coming anywhere near Division. And I mean...I didn't run around the world just so you can get caught the minute I let you out of my sight."

"Let me?" Olive asked, and she chuckled, her eyes looking down. "Ten minutes." The clock continued to tick down. She raised her hand, and Moved the thermostat down. That didn't make it work, of course, but she hoped it would magically begin to work because of the gravity of the situation. She took off her sweater. "Maybe if I keep sweating, I'll lose some weight."

"Ooh, come on..." Nick grumbled. He didn't mind the fact that his daughter was a bit pudgy. It ruled out all the stupid little boys who only wanted sticks. Boys like him. He wrinkled his nose. "Hey. I know I don't say this a lot..."

"Five minutes, I guess."

Nick sighed. He knew she didn't want to say goodbye, and he didn't blame her. He eyed her curiously, and he looked back down. "Watch out, okay?" he asked, and she nodded, staring down.

The next three minutes crept by faster than any other three minutes possibly could. Olive rose and grabbed her sack and the keys, smiling over to her father gently. "Yeah, I...I'll see you. At some point, I'll see you," she said, seeming so confident about all of this. She pushed back some of her hair, and it ruffled around her, thanks to the frizziness she'd acquired. "This shouldn't be this awkward. You should be embracing me and telling me that everything will be okay, and I should be screaming and crying and...stuff."

Nick smirked slightly. "Yeah, but I know you would hate the hugging, and the crying is so beneath you," he teased, and ruffled her already messy hair. Olive grimaced but cherished it at the same time. "Alright. Go. Don't look back...take this." He handed her a handgun and she put it in her bag, letting it slide in without touching it.

"Remember how to use it? How to cock it, and you have to squeeze the trigger…"

"Yes, yes, I know how to use a firearm."

He found himself repeating his father's advice. "Don't make any decisions any Watcher can track. You have friends out there--Cassie will be looking out for you as best as she can. Hook is a good friend, too, he'll help you get on your feet."

"Thanks, Nick," Olive said with a tiny chuckle, and she hated the fact that she couldn't call him father. It was too weird.

She walked out of the window, running down the fire escape awkwardly and vaguely heard the sound of a Bleeder breaking the lock to the hotel room. She walked down quicker. The sound of gunfire and fighting reached her ears. _He'll block the bullets. Go quietly. He promised. I mean..._

Olive hailed a taxi a few blocks away, her stomach twisting with fear. She'd never had to run while she felt so...alone.


	2. Chapter 2

((thanks to those who reviewed, i appreciate it! i own none of this, again. except olive and liam, them i own, but other than that, nothing :c anyway. here goes chapter two!))

Three years had passed since she left Nick. Olive sat in the apartment, glaring at a chessboard in front of her. The person opposite her did the same. The tension was thick in the air. Nothing but the City's street sounds crawling in from the open window could be heard. After what seemed like forever, Olive raised her hand and Moved one white pawn forward two spaces.

"Why did that take you a year?" asked the male, a light Irish accent dancing on each of his words. "It's the first move of the game, it really shouldn't take long."

"Chess is a game of strategy. Waiting a few minutes to make the first move is a mind trick," she said, smirking to his somewhat dumbfounded face. She watched him move a pawn manually. Olive stayed true and took an agonizingly long time before she moved her bishop out a few spaces.

Liam Smith, with his leg bouncing, moved his hand forward to make another move immediately. Olive moved her queen out gently, Liam made another useless move, and Olive check mated him immediately after that.

"That…that is wrong," Liam said flatly, and he looked up to her. "You just beat me in four moves. That's unfair, is what it is," he said, but he smirked all the while.

Liam was older than Olive by about three years, and taller than her by about seven inches. He'd met her years ago when Nick and Hook got together. She was much younger, as was he, but they hit it off soon after. It wasn't unusual for them to spend days together, despite the warnings of danger when multiple psychics stay together for a long time.

Liam took a bite of his Reuben sandwich. "I mean, how did you do that?" he continued, and smirked, looking wildly at the board. It was so quick, and he barely saw it coming.

"The good thing about that trick is that once you see it, you'll never miss it again," she said, and she picked a potato chip up from his plate, Moving it teasingly into her hand. She snapped into it and smirked. "A winner's potato chip."

"Yeah, well…I've got a loser sandwich. Better than your tiny little crisp any day."

Olive smirked and put the pieces back quickly, before she heard a knock on her door. She frowned a little to herself and she got up, peeping through the little hole and she tensed. She'd recognize Division scum anywhere, but was admittedly stunned to see them at her door. Olive backed up and looked over to Liam, her skin going pale and she raised her hand, bringing the handgun in from her bedroom area and tucking it gently into her jeans.

Liam tensed and watched. "Come on, we know you're here," called the Sniffs, standing outside with a bored looking expression.

Olive cracked her door, the chain still locking the door. "To what do I owe this…this?" she asked, looking disgusted.

"New protocol. We're to have a file with DNA information, fingerprints, and any other piece of useful information they've thought of from every psychic," one of them said, and he looked down at her. "We can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way. It's your choice," he said, and he adjusted his sunglasses.

She wet her lips and frowned. "Well I'm sorry General McArthur, but your search won't be necessary in here. I still live in America, I still have my rights, I have committed no crimes…so why don't you just turn around?"

"I see you'd like to visit Daddy," said the other, and he narrowed his eyes. "Open the door or we come back with more unpleasant characters, please," he said, and he looked very seriously at Olive.

She closed the door and opened the window with a careful flick of his hand. Liam frowned. "I don't know what sort of friend you think I am, but I'm not going anywhere," he maintained, and he stood his ground.

"Your bravery will get you nowhere anymore," she hissed to him, and unlocked the door.

Without any notice the two burst in, their fingers touching every surface as if to see if anything unusual had been happening. "Ooh, wow. A twofer," he said, spotting Liam, and he pulled his latex glove on. They began to set up a kit in the living room.

The first sat Liam down, and they took his fingerprints, not bothering to be gentle. "If you ask me, I think this is a good move. Hopefully soon we'll be developing trackers…So be on the lookout for that one, won't you two?" he asked, and he watched as his partner sat Olive down, taking her arm.

"Perhaps telling people that isn't the wisest idea, Vince."

"I hate needles," she said gently, staring at the needle. She seemed to go pale and then a bit green.

"Well that's just too bad, now isn't it?" he asked, and he wiped her arm with an alcohol wipe. The Sniff took the syringe and found the correct vein. As he went to stick her, the needle bent against the barrier she'd put up out of instinct. Olive smirked as he stared at the bent needle.

"Very funny…" he growled. "This time, _dear_, I'd appreciate you being a little more adult about this," he said, and the other—apparently named Vince—watched curiously as she did it again.

Vince got up and took out his gun. "Do that one more time and we'll be using an even bigger needle."

Olive growled. She was starting to feel dizzy, and the two bent needles were doing her no good. Liam looked warily at her as she snapped and shoved the two against the wall at once. "Get behind me," she said shakily to Liam, who knew very well to follow these orders. The gunfire began immediately and she tried her best to Move each one away, and in turn aim it towards them. She got lucky, once—one bullet bounced off of her shield and into the shooter's arm. He yelled and Olive began to move fast, fending off bullets as best as she could, but some were still getting through.

One whizzed by her, and by Liam. He gulped and stole the gun from her pants, which she'd obviously forgotten about. He cocked and shot the gun quickly at the men, who had no shield like they did, but they may as well have with Liam's aim.

"Come on," she said, and she pulled the door open with a free hand, backing out of the apartment as bullets flew anywhere but them.

The Sniffs chased Liam and Olive down the steps of their apartment building, until finally enough bullets had hit the men to slow them down. The other two ran out of the building, panting, and didn't stop for about four blocks. Olive's chest burned with the reminder of how incredibly out of shape she was. Her muscles began to ache and she had to stop.

Olive leaned against the building and slid down the to the grimy ground, panting much more than Liam. "You…need to do more cardio," he said down at her, but her heaving was not just from the fact that she was physically tired. She was also panicking quite a bit.

"Don't you…don't you, know, what, happens, when people, fight, Division?" she asked, looking up to her, her legs throbbing from the sudden movement. "I'm, I'm so sorry, Liam…"

He looked grim. "I know. I understand…I mean, I doubt you could've helped it, right?" he asked, and he smiled down to her hesitantly. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "We should find a safe place. Maybe hook up with a Shadow."

"I only have about twenty-seven dollars on me."

"A…generous, Shadow," Liam said, and he pulled poor Olive up, nodding. "We'll be okay. I promise…as soon as we're Shadowed the Sniffs won't be able to find us. And it'll give us plenty of time to figure out a plan. I'm sure our friends will be more than willing to help us out."

"Ooh, right. I don't think that'll happen like that, Liam. No one wants to be involved with Division if they can help it, especially now that they're…keeping tabs on us. Did you hear what that guy said? We'll be wearing ankle bracelets soon, as if Watchers weren't enough." Olive closed her eyes, shaking her head.

Liam sighed. "I know a Shadow. We may have to give him a pretty nice IOU, and this will be gambling your twenty-seven dollars on a couple of bus tickets to uncertainty," Liam mumbled, walking at her pace down the street. "He lives in Philly."

"I'd be willing to sleep with this man if he Shadows us successfully," Olive said flatly, and Liam wrinkled his nose at that stupid comment.

----

Liam and Olive sat on the bus, staring forward. "You know what I should try when we're finally safe?" he asked Olive gently, and she looked up curiously. "I should try putting highlights in your hair."

"That's pretty _fabulous_ of you, Liam," she teased with a small smirk.

He laughed. "Yeah, yeah, make fun of my sexual preference…" he said, and he ruffled her hair. "Keep that up and you may end up with lime green and maroon in your hair tomorrow morning."

Olive chuckled, but then looked down, chewing gently on her lip. "I can't believe I killed someone," she said, very softly, so no one would care. Most people were engrossed in their mp3 players, of course, but she just wanted to be careful. "Can you?"

"I'm…not thinking about that. They were tracking us like animals, Olly, they—"

"Don't say they deserved it. No one deserves that," she said softly.

Awkward silence covered them until Liam finally broke the tension. "We should try to catch up with a Pusher. They're rather useful." As soon as he'd said that, he knew he'd just made it more awkward.

Olive frowned. "Yes, they're…real, helpful. No." She looked very sternly up to him, before she looked back down at a book she was reading. "My dad'd know what to do."

Liam nodded. "So would my mum."

The two of them stayed silent, and Liam allowed Olive to snore and drool on him as they made their way west.


	3. Chapter 3

((again, i own nothing except my own characters c: ))

Olive woke up the next morning in a hotel room. She groaned and pushed back some of her hair, looking around and seeing Liam pull a shirt over his head. Her eyes still wanted to close, to avoid what sort of trouble she was in. She didn't want to think about Division tracking her down to perform tests on her and make her participate in an army. She closed her eyes once more.

Liam nudged her awake. "Come on, dearie. I just called my old friend and he said he'd meet with us in about an hour," he said, and tugged her out of bed and onto her behind.

Olive rose and rubbed her eyes, smearing her makeup and making her look a bit like a raccoon. "You're a jerk," was all she said, but she wasn't serious, of course. She stumbled into the shower.

About thirty minutes later she emerged, her hair still wet, but she was far more awake than before. "Alright, come on. Let's go haggle with a Shadow. I mean, you know how incredibly generous they are…" Olive grumbled, Moving the card key to the hotel and she stuck it into her purse.

"This one's different. Or at least, he was," he said, and shut the door behind them, smiling down at her. "Buck up, come on. It could be a lot worse…Division could have caught us by now, but we're still in the clear. As long as we keep moving, right?" he said, and put an arm around her, shaking her shoulder happily.

"Right," Olive said softly.

They walked down into the lobby and found the taxi Liam had called earlier. "I'm sorry for being so…moody, Liam. I just can't get what my dad said out of my head. He made it clear he wanted me to stay away from Division. I mean, he toted me around for years, made sure I was safe, and then I end up in this position anyway. Sorta seems mean, I guess."

"It's not like you wanted this to happen," Liam mumbled in response, but never said that it wasn't her fault. It was her fault they were in this situation, he wasn't going to lie, but he didn't blame her. There just wasn't any room for that.

The taxi ride there was very silent and awkward for the two of them. They both replayed their parents' warnings in their heads about what Division was all about, what to do, what not to do…they both came to the conclusion that this was the best thing they could do, for right now. Division didn't take too kindly to rogue psychics killing their agents, even if technically all they did was protect themselves, and they were probably on their tail as the taxi drove.

"Thanks," Olive said with a small smile to the taxi driver, and she handed him the fare. Being a Mover made it quite easy to pick-pocket, she decided, and his Shifting abilities made turning the ones into twenties was priceless.

They exited and made their way to an apartment complex looking more seedy than even the ones they'd lived in. "It's a bit dodgy, but…" Liam mumbled, and he pushed the buzzer. "Hey. It's Liam Smith," he said through the intercom.

"Ooh! Hey! Come on up!" said the speaker, and Olive opened the door when they were buzzed.

The two walked in, seeing all sorts of characters walking around the mail boxes, glaring at these two wide-eyed people. "I guess…the fifth floor?" Olive asked, and she opened the elevator, stepping in. Three people followed after them, standing behind them.

As was custom, nobody said anything on the way up and they stared straight ahead. A man behind Liam was breathing extraordinarily loud and smelled a little like rotten cabbage, but still, no one looked at anyone. Olive did smile to herself, though, as she stared forward, imagining the different ways this man could've possible begun to smell this bad. Old underwear came to mind, followed by bathing in cabbage. The elevator finally stopped and the smelly man pushed both Liam and Olive aside to run out of the elevator.

When the two finally managed to come up to the correct floor, Olive glanced over at Liam. "I thought, living in New York, I'd seen it all…" she mumbled, and the two exchanged a small smirk at the thought of the smelly man.

They reached the apartment, and Liam looked both ways before changing the number on the door from a thirty-five to a thirty-four. When Olive gave him a face, he shrugged. "It's in case someone decides to knock or something, and interrupt us. Or, y'know, Division." The two nodded, and Olive knocked on the door.

The man who answered grinned down at them. "Well, hello," he said. He was a pale man, who was short and despite his young age was already balding. His belly hung over a pair of cargo shorts, and on his shirt was a picture of Batman and Robin. "Liam…hey, how're you doing? Come on in."

He ushered the two in, Liam all-smiles and Olive with a dainty, polite smile. She wasn't here to make a friend. The apartment matched the rest of the building, with water stains spread on every wall. The carpet was probably a product of the mid-seventies, along with the television and the furniture. It smelled stale, which was oddly enough a welcome smell ever since the cabbage man run-in.

"It's great to see you, Paulie. I've been doing just fine. How about you?"

"Ooh, pretty good. Finally got my own bachelor's pad—"

"How much do you charge for a Shadow?" Olive asked, right off the bat. She took out her wallet. "We don't have much, but we're willing to owe you."

"Well that depends," Paulie continued, in a slow southern drawl that reminded Olive how tired she was. "What are you hidin' from that you have to come to one of the weaker Shadows in this part of the US?" he asked, sizing her up curiously.

Liam decided to take this. "We've had a run-in with Division. We won't be here very long, we just need a day or two before we can decide what to do next," he said, and he smiled coolly down to Paulie. "We came here because we knew you would help us out. I mean, you know what it's like to be a sticky situation, don't you?"

"Well, I've been in a few situations, but still. I have a very high rate. If yall don't have much…"

"I know of a few situations you've been in. A love letter rings a bell," he said, and he frowned. "Does it ring a bell with you?"

Paulie frowned up at Liam. "I suppose it does, yes. My first day deposit will be $100…and I charge $10 an hour after that," he said, nodding very seriously.

"That's outrageous!"

"No," Liam said shakily. "We'll accept it," he said, and quickly shook hands with Paulie, as if that made it more official. "We'll…have to sleep here, won't we?" he asked, and he sighed, looking around. "That's fine, I suppose. Thank you, Paulie. We appreciate it more than you know," he said, smoothly, trying to soothe the temper radiating from poor Olive.

"There's a few blankets in the closet, but only one bedroom. Someone's going to have to be the gentleman and take the floor," Paulie said, which was perhaps a slight towards Liam.

"We'll make do. Won't we, Olly?" Liam looked over to Olive, and he smiled to her, nodding. "We will."

----

Liam and Olive both ended up sleeping on the floor, because they decided they both belonged there. She laid her head on his chest and sighed a little. "Hey," she began, and she looked up to him. "What did you mean by 'love letter'?"

Liam smirked. "When I was a little younger, he called me and asked me to break into his own home to change a love letter that he was writing to his mistress. He left it on his dresser. Stupid man…well, I managed to Shift it, but someone had called the police. They arrested me, and he didn't even come to bail me out. He did drop charges, though, so…" he sighed, and after Olive's giggle, they went back to silence. For a bit.

"We're going to have to fight them. We can't run around from Shadow to Shadow with no money…we're going to have to bite them back, somehow, and we have to make it count," Olive said over Paulie's snores.

He nodded. "You're right. But how do we fight them? How do two people fight against this…huge, monster?" he asked, as if she might know the answer.

"I dunno. I guess you just…do. Get it from the inside out, somehow," she said, softly. She looked up to him. "Y'think we could get our mom and dad back? If they're…y'know."

"Of course they are," he said automatically. "And yeah, I think we could try. Should try. I told my mum I'd come and get her at some point, when the time felt right," Liam mumbled. He went back to the place when he saw her last. He had no idea she would be taken away when she went to the grocery store, but she never came back. Liam hated that he wandered the streets, unsure of what could've happened to his mother. He grimaced when he remembered what Hook had told him.

"I told Nick the same thing," Olive said, and she chuckled. "We'll give it a shot, then."


	4. Chapter 4

((finally another chapter! haha. some reviews would be loved, actually, so i know i'm not writing to no one, lmao. but even if you don't, please enjoy! i own...a bit of this, actually, but not it all.))

Two long, stinky days passed. Olive and Liam sat in the living room while Paulie munched on some fried chicken. "You know, my Shadow is going to start wearing off any moment now," he said, looking over to their two worried faces. "Not t'put more stress on yall or anything, just…saying, really…" he looked back down as they both glared at him.

"Maybe we should visit Hook," Liam said. "We have no other ideas. We have nowhere else to go. He'll make sure we're alright, for a little while."

"I don't wanna drag Division into his life anymore. I mean, you know what happened with his wife…" Olive mumbled, and she looked down, sad about the story. She pushed back some of her hair, which was surprisingly not as greasy as she would have expected, living in this apartment with Paulie. He made her want to finally invest in a workout machine.

For the past two days they stayed up way too late and got up way too early to think about what they would do next. They played with the idea of one of them getting locked into Division to find out anything they use for blackmail. They came to the conclusion that they neither wanted to go in, nor did they want the other to go in. There was no real way out, unless you had the pieces set up like Olive's mother.

Both Liam and Olive, however moral they were, played more with the idea of blackmail. After all, it'd worked once before…why not try it again? They had no suitcase, however, and absolutely no knowledge. It'd become public that Division was now keeping more tabs on the psychics, and thanks to the general public's distrust of people like them, this was received with a smile.

"I know you don't wanna, but…I doubt Hook would want us in this predicament without us helping, anyway," Liam said, but it was half-heartedly. He didn't want to drag this man in their situation either, because he of all people did not deserve it. Still, he was all they had.

Olive finally gave in to the idea, and before she knew it, she was counting the money out to Paulie. "I really do wish yall luck in your endeavor to fend off Division," he said, his eyes greedy as she placed twenty after twenty in his hand. Of course, about half of this was Liam's doing. He didn't relish tricking an old friend, but they had no time to collect actual money.

"Be careful, now," he said, and he bid them goodbye with a small smile and a wink of his eye.

----

The bus to Trenton, New Jersey was a long and dull one. "I have never traveled so much so quickly," Olive said with a grin, sitting in the Greyhound bus and looking over to Liam. She was looking more and more stressed in her face, and he could tell. Her eyes were looking a little less…bright. He was sure his own face was looking the same way. He looked down at her in return, and grinned a tired sort of grin.

"Neither have I. I don't really travel too much, aside from coming to America in the first place," he said, and opened a magazine. A hair magazine. "Hook will be happy to see us, I'm sure. I mean, he won't be too happy once we tell him why we're coming, of course, but…" he sighed gently to himself, ruffling his hair. He was due for a haircut, for sure. "Do you think he'll know anything?"

"I doubt it. He hasn't been with Division in years…too many things have changed since then. But he might know other people who've come out, who might know something. Not that they'd be willing to or anything like that. What's it to them?" she asked, and she looked over his shoulder at the magazine.

"Maybe we'll get lucky and we'll find a disgruntled one," Liam said, and he smirked, looking down over to her. "I mean, the chances of that must be good. I'd be pretty disgruntled if I worked for Division."

"I would, too," Olive mumbled, and she shook her head. "But would I be willing to divulge a secret that would help someone like us?"

"Like I said…we may get lucky."

----

Olive knocked impatiently on Hook's door, and the two of them waited. After a moment the door opened and he smiled down at the two of them. "Ahhh…hello," he said, and he looked back to his apartment. "Give me one second, yes?" he asked, and he smiled down at them before closing the door.

Liam and Olive exchanged looks of curiosity. About three minutes later a slinky young woman walked out of his apartment, looking a bit cross about being told to leave so quickly. Hook came back and opened the door another minute later, smirking and nodded. "Nice to see you two again. Sorry about that, just…yeah. Come on in," he said, and opened the door all the way.

They entered, and immediately plopped down, not needing an invitation. His apartment looked every bit as bachelor as they'd expected, and didn't mind one bit. "So. To what do I owe this…surprise visit?"

"I am sorry about that, mate, you must understand that we came here strictly as an emergency. We've got Division on our tail, now, ever since they tried to gather our identities," Liam said, sadly.

"Ooh…you experienced that, did you?"

"We did," Olive said with a small sigh. She picked at her nails while her hands sat in her lap. "And we don't wanna stay long, because we don't want Sniffs coming around, but we were wondering if you couldn't offer us some help." She continued to pick anxiously, not wanting to be here at all.

Hook frowned. "What sort of help?" he asked, carefully, and he poured himself a glass of vitamin water.

"Nothing too much. Just…I mean, do you have any sort of…information?" she asked, and he blinked. "Incriminating information. Stuff the media would actually not treat like a good thing." Olive smiled gently up at him. "I mean, you know how much people love us…"

"I do," Hook said sarcastically, and he leaned back, crossing his legs. "Everything I know has already been leaked by Division themselves, but in a positive way," he said, and dropped some coffee in front of them. "You know how they manipulate facts. I'm sure there's something useful out there, just nothing I know," he mumbled, smiling over to them.

Liam nodded. "Understandable. Do you happen to know of anyone who might know something? Any recent lay-offs from Division?" he asked, and watched as Olive rose, excusing herself to use the restroom.

"I…well. I do know one fellow," he said, and he frowned a little bit. "I have his number around somewhere. He worked with Division until very recently…he was let go, after years of showing up and breaking down people's doors for their life," Hook said. He didn't bother to hide his bitterness…Division had ruined his life, his parents-in-law's life…and for what? Some training with a handgun? He wrinkled his nose as he sipped his water and continued to look for the number.

As he wrote it down, Liam looking on somberly, Olive rushed in. "I think I just saw Division coming into the building," she said shakily. "I looked out the window, and saw like four guys with gloves on their hands," she said, looking over to Hook immediately for an answer. Liam did exactly the same thing.

He wrote down the number, his hands shaking. "You two take the stairs down. They always take the elevators, if there is one…they're lazy like that," he said, always cool in the face of danger. He gave the number to Liam. "Olive. Did you drink your coffee? I know you did, Liam."

"No."

"Good. You two take this coffee cup with you, and try not to touch anything else. Use this newspaper to open the door. Hurry, and good luck," he said, ushering them out with his calm voice.

Liam snatched the cup and walked out, running down the hallway with Olive behind him, stuffing the newspaper in her pocket. She Moved the doors open with a wave of her hand and the two ran down the stairs as fast as their feet would allow them, until they heard a similar commotion coming up the stairs.

Olive grabbed Liam and pulled him against the stairwell wall. She waited there until the Division agents rounded the corner. Like lightning she raised her hand, and a good few of them flew into the wall. Those that didn't fly were knocked into those who did, and before she knew it, they jumped over them and ran down the stairs.

Once outside, they ran to a city park that was nearby. Once more Olive felt the uncomfortable burn from her chest all the way into her throat, and she collapsed onto the ground. A few hundred feet away, children played on a playground, and she and Liam both knew this would be a safe place to stay for now.

Hurriedly, Olive dug into her bag and found an old inhaler. She puffed and inhaled, leaning back against a tree and staring up at the leaves that gave her the best shade. She exhaled about ten seconds later, seeing stars. "You're right. I need to go home and get a treadmill." She smiled up at Liam, who was now plopping down next to her.

"Will you be okay?" he asked, skeptically.

"Yeah, I'll be fine…"

"Good. We have to find a payphone immediately. They know where we are. We need to give this guy…Mitch Alexander…a call. Come on, up we go," he said, and he tugged her up to her feet, her thighs burning as weight was put on them.

They wandered around, asking different people for some change for the payphone, until they finally had enough to allow them only two calls. Olive leaned against the telephone as Liam dialed quickly, looking down and speaking quietly.

"Hello?" the phone said.

"Yes, this is a Mitch Alexander?"

"Not if you're selling something."

"Ooh, no, sir, I'm not selling a thing. Hook Waters gave us your number. We need your help. Will you meet us at…" Liam looked around, and saw Olive point at a little diner. "The Gunga Diner. A nice public place where Division scum won't be able to get us. We just want to talk, for now," he said, quickly. "Tonight, at eight. Please."

There was a frustrated sigh from the other line. "Yeah. Sure. How will I know who you are?"

"One of us will be wearing a red flower in her hair. Thank you, Mr. Alexander. Goodbye." Liam hung up and rolled his eyes. "I'm shocked…"

"I guess we should go look for a red flower," Olive said with a tiny smile.


End file.
